In September 2010, she pleaded guilty to interfering with "the public's right to find enjoyment" while acting drunk on a beach the previous summer during a "Jersey Shore" shoot. She was fined about $500 and ordered by a judge, who called her a "Lindsay Lohan wannabe", to serve one day of community service.

A year earlier, Polizzi generated online buzz with a video that showed her getting punched in the face by a 24-year-old high school gym teacher during a confrontation at a bar.